How we helped ban smoking in public places

Studies by the HRI into the effects of passive smoking on heart disease were pivotal in the global move to ban smoking in public places.

Scientists from our Clinical Research Group actively investigated the links between atherosclerosis and a number of lifestyle factors (particularly obesity, diabetes, hypertension, smoking and inflammatory diseases) to determine how these events contribute to disease development and progression.

"We were the first group to discover the link between passive smoking and damage to the blood vessels in the body," says Clinical Research Group Leader Professor David Celermajer.

"We and others have estimated that that discovery has probably already saved several hundred thousand lives."

The study found pre-natal exposure to a mother's smoking decreased the amount of good cholesterol in children which may increase the risk of eventual heart attacks and strokes by up to 20 per cent.

The results were more significant than expected.

“We were gobsmacked,” said Professor Celermajer.

“Most studies suggest that if you stop smoking eight years later a lot of your risk has reduced. The reason we were gobsmacked is here are kids who were exposed to another person's smoke when they were growing in their mum's belly and eight years later, eight years after being removed from that insult they've still got a footprint on it."

The researchers found the children whose mothers reported smoking while pregnant had less high-density lipo-protein or so-called good cholesterol than children whose mothers hadn't smoked. That cholesterol protects against heart disease.

The study found the smoking mother's children have 1.3 millimoles per litre of the cholesterol compared to a more normal level of 1.5 millimoles, a significant difference according to Professor Celermajer.

Stopping atherosclerosis in its tracks

Will a fitness tracker help you reach your health and fitness goals?

It’s hard to deny the growing trend of wearable activity and fitness trackers. If you pay close attention to the wrist of the person next to you, chances are you’ll find they’re not just keeping track of the time, but their daily step count, energy expenditure, heart rate or sleep quality.

Dr Anna Waterhouse joins HRI as Group Leader

The HRI is pleased to welcome Dr Anna Waterhouse as Group Leader of the Cardiovascular Medical Devices Group and Senior Lecturer at the University of Sydney. Dr Waterhouse’s research focuses on how medical devices – such as artificial hearts, stents and bypass machines – interact with the body. Her aim is to understand the interactions of medical devices with patients’ blood, proteins and cells to develop more sophisticated and compatible materials.